May 2018 was steady eddy month. Pretty much all numbers were similar to April except I took a hit on one affiliate promotion. Traffic and display ad revenue more or less the same. Monumetric went down due to adjusting placements, but I added Media.net to the mix and monkeyed around with ads in my email newsletters.
A merchant I promote as an affiliate went broke. They were bought out of bankruptcy. The new owners ended the affiliate program in CJ.com. They tell me it’s temporary and that they’re setting up an in-house affiliate program. I hope they do because it was the best affiliate opportunity in the industry. Until then, I’ll be down about $2,000 to $3,000 per month. Them’s the breaks in this business.
This is on the heels of another merchant that paid me substantial recurring commissions cutting my recurring commission from 35% to 20%.
Yes, I love affiliate marketing, but as you can see, it has its risks.
Good thing I make okay money with ads too and that I promote many merchants. While I took a $2K hit, I’m not scrambling.
IMPORTANT DISCLAIMER ABOUT THIS INCOME REPORT:
My income reports pertain to two niche sites I publish. One is a broad-niche, wide appeal type of site monetized with display ads and affiliate offers. The other site is a very focused niche site serving a particular business community. It’s monetized solely with affiliate offers via an extensive email newsletter.
This income report does NOT include any revenue or expenses pertaining to MyPerfectBlog.com or a few other niche sites I own (one of which is growing fast which I’m excited about).
The point of these income reports is to demonstrate that niche sites can be profitable and a good business. They’re also popular articles which helps get more traffic to this site.
May 2018 Income Figures (USD)
Revenue
Niche Site #1: Broad-Appeal Niche Site (B2C):
- Display ad revenue: $21,067
- Affiliate commission revenue: $4,693
- Total revenue niche site #1: $25,760
Niche Site #2: Narrow Niche Site (B2B):
- Affiliate Revenue: $4,765
Total revenue for both sites: $30,525 (April 2018 = $32,174)
Expenses
I do my best to attribute a portion of my overall expenses applicable to the 2 sites reported on in this income report.
- Content: $1,700
- Hosting: $750
- VA’s: $1,700
- Software (AWeber etc.): $700 (my overall software expense is a bit higher than this, so I approximate the cost applicable to the two sites in this income report).
Total expenses: $4,850 (April = $4,800)
Net Income
Net Income for the 2 niche sites: $25,675 USD (April = $27,374)
Proof (Screenshots)
Below are screenshots of most revenue sources. A few screenshots not included – I include some as proof of general amount of earnings.
Click to enlarge images.
AdSense
Video Ad
Monumetric
Amazon
Shareasale
CJ.com
Skimlinks
Media.net
Email Newsletter Ads
Jon runs the place around here. He pontificates about launching and growing online publishing businesses, aka blogs that make a few bucks. His pride and joy is the email newsletter he publishes that’s “the best blogging email newsletter around.”
Hyperbole? Maybe, but go check it out to see what some readers say.
In all seriousness, Jon is the founder and owner of a digital media company that publishes a variety of web properties visited and beloved by millions of readers monthly. Fatstacks is where he shares a glimpse into his digital publishing business.
Thanks for sharing that, Jon. Can I ask what the video ads are? Are these video ads that are displayed on the sites or a YouTube channel that goes along with them?
Hey Anne,
I share which video ad it is in the course…. you can get access to it via Training.
Have you been affected by the Yoast SEO bug?
If you are unsure search for “yoast SEO ranking drop”
Hey David,
I haven’t, but I did have a similar issue last year. I never could tell if it was Yoast SEO or a theme or a conflict between the two. Anyway, when I switched themes, the problem resolved.
Thats so cool, Jon. $25K is still a very good amount of income. Btw, how many other niche sites do you own apart from these two?
Impressive numbers, especially the display ad revenue is quite encouraging
Amazon CPM ads are also closing at the end of september. Which CPM network you recommend to replace Amazon CPM ads? Thanks.
Hey Danny,
I saw that recently. I guess it never worked out. They punted me a while ago and I have no idea why… I retain Amazon Associates account in good standing so I’m not sure what was up. Replacement? The usual suspects such as AdSense, premium ad networks, Monumetric, Amazon native ads, Media.net… this is all stuff I’ve used and/or am using.
Thank you for the post. So, what will be the best ads placement for highest income from media.net.
Also, how many daily views you have to reach this income.
I am really motivated after seeing your results from Display Ads. Thanks for sharing man
Thanks this post. Nice you have got a huge income.